At
times, people claiming to be on the spiritual path, say
that they have no use for money and matters. On the other
hand, people carrying on with material pursuits say that
they need money and material things always. This is a
mono-theistic view towards life and not a practical one
towards human existence. The European writer Georg Wilhelm
Friedrich Hegel proclaims the theory of “Spirit
Alone Is” whereas Karl max proclaims “Matter
Alone Is”. Life is a synthesis of matter and spirit.
A balanced life means the maintenance of a balance between
spirit and matter in the right proportion. It is the spirit
or soul which holds a dynamic human body in an organic
form. Without the medium of a material body, the spirit
cannot manifest itself and without the spirit within,
the organic body is nothing but a dead substance. One
needs to have a strong body to carry on with the spiritual
practices. Therefore, the Yogis of yore always emphasized
about the maintenance of physical excellence. Yoga and
pranayama are the prescriptions. One may theoretically
assert the existence of a subtle body within a gross body.
However, the particles of the subtle body are basically
gross in nature. The gravitational and magnetic forces
also consist of material forces only. These two aspects
of human life are balanced by the mind. Mind has two components:
Imagination and Desire.

All
the activities of the human being emanate due to imaginations
and desires of various types. Saints like Shirdi Sai Baba
always emphasized on the control of mind as a sine qua
non to spiritual advancement. They also knew that it is
not easy for a human being to control the two fundamental
ingredients of the mind, i.e., imagination and desire
so easily and within a short period of time. Examples
show that Baba for decades, tried hard to evolve the minds
of His devotees from its sheer grossness to lofty heights.
He was keen to know the way in which His devotees used
to think. He often asked His devotees as to what they
talked in Dixit wada or in some other place when they
came to meet him.

Two
anecdotes from Shri Sai Satcharita would explain the point.

Once
Hemadpant and Balasaheb Bhate were sitting in Dixit Wada
having a heated argument on whether one needs a guru.
The discussion went on for some time and in the end remained
inconclusive with both men losing their peace of mind.
Later when both went with others to the Masjid, Baba asked
Kakasaheb Dixit “What was going on in the wada?
What was all that dispute about? And what was this Hemadpant
saying?” Between the wada and the Masjid is a considerable
distance. How then did Baba know about this incident?
This shows Baba’s all pervasiveness and omniscience
as He could read the minds of all, no matter at what distance
they may be from Him1.

Nanasaheb
was once sitting in the Masjid when a Mohammedan gentleman
from Bijapur came with his family to see Baba. On seeing
veiled ladies with him, Nanasaheb wanted to go away, but
Baba prevented him from doing so. When one of the ladies
removed her veil for saluting Baba’s feet, Nanasaheb,
who had a glimpse of her face, was extremely attracted
by her beauty. Knowing Nana’s restlessness of mind,
Baba spoke to him after the lady had left the place, “Nana,
why are you getting agitated in vain? Let the senses do
their allotted work or duty, we should not meddle with
their work. God had created this beautiful world and it
is our duty to appreciate its beauty. This again shows
how Baba knew what was going through His devotee’s
mind and how He helped them to control it and evolve2.

We
should sincerely pray for getting the inner strength of
mind and ethical conduct.

Endnotes1Indira Kher (1999). Shri Sai Satcharita:
The Life and Teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba. Sterling: New
Delhi, Translated from the original version in Marathi
by Govind R. Dabholkar. See chapter 2.2ibid., chapter 49.

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